Grove
Ferry Boat Club
46th Anniversary 1964 - 2010
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ALONG THE RIVERBANK 2010
 | NEWS 16. What a Duck Race day that was. The morning was very gloomy and with a strong wind and low cloud racing across the sky it looked as though the day could have been a washout. But at high noon the clouds lifted and by Duck race 1 the sun made an appearance and 200 yellow plastic lookalikes made their way to the finishing line. Although the crowds were not as large as previous years it didn't stop them digging into their pockets and getting all 200 ducks wet for a 2nd time. Through tremendous efforts by you club members another 50 tickets were sold for the final race and this all helped towards our donation to Demelza House. Once the ducks had been cleared from the river (the plastic ones not the feathery kind !) the stage was set for the arrival of the fantastically built Customs boat which caught all the pirates by surprise with its large water cannon blasting everything and everyone in its path. The Black Pig was the first to take the fight back to the men in blue and then all hell let loose as water bombs, water pistols and buckets of river water were thrown in every direction. The battle lasted for a good 3/4 hours and it carried on well after the referees horn had blown. It was great great fun and gave us all the chance to let our hair down and let off steam. Thanks to everybody for all your efforts as without you we would most definately not have the thriving and successful club that we have today.
NEWS 15. Workparty 24th July 2010. We seem to strike lucky with the weather on workparty days and this was another one of those balmy days.The Northbank was a hive of industry with chainsaws , mowers, strimmers and kettles filling the summer air. Lots of work, lots of banter and lots of grub made the day a successful one and the Northbank is looking delightful through all the efforts of those trusty bunch of hard working club members. Thanks to all who made the day so enjoyable.
NEWS 14. 4th July Picnic weekend was again blessed with hot sunshine and chilled out people. The Saturday was a quiet affair with just a few boats travelling down to Redhouse and enjoying an evening around the BBQ. Sunday was also a relaxed day with boats turning up and all sorts of tasty grub being magically produced from the galleys. Weekends like this are always to be treasured, away from the hurly burly life and time to slow down a bit. Great !!!!!!!!
NEWS 13. A Surprise party for Alan Gittings was indeed a surprise for Alan. A secret trip down the river the day before by a group of crafty schemers was successful in putting up gizzmos and transporting down the clubs BBq to Redhouse Marsh. Alans first hint of "something going on" was a banner stretched over the bridge at Plucks Gutter telling all the boating world of his special birthday. A big turn out, a wonderful hog roast so expertly cooked by our new meat chef Jon Rudd AND GLORIOUS weather made it a great day for Alan & for all of us.
NEWS 12. Work Party 13th June 2010. Thanks to a great turnout of 24 willing hands 13 tasks were scheduled and duly completed on another successful work day. Special thanks to Our lovely ladies who never fail to produce another banquet of wonderful delights. All of our facilities are now looking superb and all of our club members can benefit from all the hard work that has been put in over the year by a group of hard core members who have given so much of their time for the benefit of our club. Without them we would not be enjoying our wonderful facilities. Thank you so much.
NEWS 11. Dinghy Run June 2010. 14 small boats made the annual run up river to Fordwich on a warm & sunny June day. The weather forecast wasn't too good but apart from one heavy rain shower (when we were at the pub !!) it was really perfect conditions for the trip. "Perlican" kept her record up of having to have a tow sometime during the journey and "Ronjo" had to take on ballast so that the captain could see where he was going. Dunkerque Spirit (alias Vital Spark alias ....) provided the music on route and a great day was had by all. Thank you everybody for another great Grove Ferry Boat Club day out. (Photos are on Photo 2010 Page).
NEWS 10. Dunkirk Little Ships Trip May 2010. Report on way
NEWS 9. Work Party 8th May 2010. Another terrific effort by 16 members on Saturday ensured that the Clubs Patio now has a Landing Stage. The fence has been fitted around the upper Patio and within a few weeks the whole area will be ready for use for Club Members. Thank you so much to everybody who has helped to make this major project a truely wonderful addition to our facilities.
NEWS 8. Work Party Weekend 24th/25th April 2010. With the temperature soaring to 20 Deg C, a fantastic effort by 16 members on Saturday and 18 on Sunday ensured that the Clubs Patio is now nearing completion. The transformation is amazing and credit must go to Jon Rudd & John Bottle for their expertize over the design and knowledge of the project, our wonderful ladies who have constantly produced energy restoring refreshments and of course the hard grafting Club members who have given up their precious time for the benefit of the club and all who will use this fantastic facility.
NEWS 7. Fitting Out Supper 2010. What a splendid start to this years season. 36 members gathered at the club on Saturday for a lovely evening with five very special ladies Sheila, Myra,June, Judi and Sue with some help from their crews prepared and served a fantastic meal with a choice of chicken chasseur, beef casserole or fish pie followed by a selection of wonderful desserts.During the meal we were tested with an interesting quiz & the evening finished with a raffle expertly called by Ellie. Thank you to everyone who helped to create such a successful event.
NEWS 6. Shakedown & Easter Cruise, Due to poor weather conditions it was decided to cancel the trip up the Wandsum until warmer weather.Sunday was forecasted to be the better day and the the four boats who had planned to attend the cruise and the members who had expressed an interest in crewing mustered at Redhouse at 13.30. With the weather still unsettled and 20 knot winds at Ramsgate ,14 club members set off for what looked like a short run to the mouth of the river but with decreasing winds and the sun making a welcome appearance and Colin Carr the Sandwich harbour masters confirmation that the sea conditions in the bay were favorable we had a enjoyable day visiting the seals and checking out the new entrance channel buoys also giving the boat engines a good blast to blow away the winter cobwebs. We all safely returned to redhouse at 1800hrs and spent the evening together on one of the boats.
NEWS 5. Sunday 28th March 2010 Extra Workparty. Report to follow ......... (Photos on the Major Projects Page)
NEWS 4. Saturday 20th March 2010 Workparty. 19 Club Members toiled & grafted & moved tons more earth & rubble. The Patio is taking shape and the excavated soil is being made to good use to fill in holes on the North Bank. Plenty of refreshments were available to boost the troops and thanks must go to all the ladies & gents who gave up their valuble time for the benefit of the Club. (Photos are on the Major Projects Page)
NEWS 3. On a soggy wet Sunday afternoon, over 40 Club members turned out for our AGM. That was a terrific effort and shows that it is important to you that your voice can be heard to make our Club such a happy and enjoyable place to spend your hard earned leisure hours.
The meeting started at 3pm and the Flag officers & Committee gave their reports of the events of the past year. It is always sad when the Commodore has to stand down after he has served the 3 year term and I know we all wish to give our hearty thanks to Alan Gittings for all that he has done over the years that he has been our Commodore. Thanks must also go to our retiring Rear Commodore Lloyd Weston for all the help and guidance that he has passed on over the past years and both Alan & Lloyd have kindly offered to become Trustees. Colin Brazier & Wally Wanstall have also remained as Trustees.
There were new amendments to the rules which were read out by Alan and were accepted by the attending members and then names were put forward to take the vacant Flag Officer and Committee positions. During the break, voting slips were filled in and Wally Wanstall kindly served as our teller to give the results which was a resounding yes to all that had applied for the vacant positions.
We would like to thank new Commodore Colin Brazier, new Vice Commodore Steve Dennis, new Rear Commodore Tony Mackenzie, new Works Co-ordinator Jon Rudd, new Membership Representative Steve Hogwood and also the three new Committee members Peter Dowell, David Burford & Clive Mowatt for taking up their responsibilities. Thanks also to the re-elected Treasurer Peter Downs, Secretary Cherry Cuckoo, Membership Secretary John Bottle, and Works Committee Ken Willison for continuing to support the Club for another year.
The meeting closed with presentations of Mementos to Alan Gittings & Lloyd Weston for their services to the Club.
NEWS 2. The first Work Party of the year was a weekend of graft, skill & lots of laughter as the Patio & the North Bank were attacked by the Grove Ferry Boat Club workforce. A hardy mixture of ladies & gents both young & not so young worked like trojans to remove earth, concrete, metal objects, tea, coffee & delicious food. It was a fantastic effort that was well organised with the recycling of the earth & rubble that was cleared from the old patio being used on the North Bank to fill in holes and suchlike. Weather permitting it is hoped to complete the transformation of the Clubhouse Patio by April 2010 so that all Club Members will benefit from the massive efforts of the Work Partys. Thank you so much to all who gave up their weekend.
NEWS 1.
Cobweb Cruise 2010 has started our boating year with bright sunny but slighty nippy weather. A great turnout of around 30 members arrived at Redhouse Marsh with a superb array of goodies with mulled wine warming the cockles of our hearts. Tasty snacks were arriving from all over the place and were gratefully tucked into. It was great to catch up with old & new friends again and to blow the cobwebs out of the previously snow covered boats."Jofre's" bad luck struck again when mechanical failure forced poor Alan & Sheila to be towed back to Grove Ferry by our great friends from the Boathouse, Irene & Roy on the impressive "Reneroy". Thanks to you all for making the day so special and it was great to see so many boats out on the river after all the bad weather that has been thrown at us over the past few weeks. Trying not to miss any of the boats who attended they were Turramurra, Joffre, Lady Belmont, Jaspen, Nauti Buoy, Capetown Girl, Perlican, Cygnet, Sara, Mystique & Four Winner.
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